DEDICATION TO DIVERSITY
Initiatives Open Doors for Inclusion
In addition, Embry-Riddle partners with The Boeing Company on the Boeing Scholars program, which supports underrepresented students, veterans and their dependents pursuing degrees in aeronautical science, aircraft maintenance and STEM-related fields. Since 2019, the Boeing Scholars at Embry-Riddle program has served 44 future leaders. Boeing also offers a number of other valuable programs for students, such as The Boeing Career Mentoring Program, which matches 30 to 40 students per year with alumni mentors and offers internship placements. In addition, Embry-Riddle typically has a large presence at the Women in Aviation International annual conference. At the conference, on our campuses, and even in places like South Africa, Embry-Riddle offers both in-person and online learning activities that are fun and hands-on to help girls see themselves in aviation careers. As the leading educator of tomorrow’s workforce, Embry-Riddle is consistently working on groundbreaking programs that make higher education accessible for everyone worldwide, including military service members, veterans and their families.
During the last decade, Embry-Riddle’s focus on innovative programs that increase the representation of women and other groups traditionally underrepresented in STEM has paid off across all of its campuses. After all, transformative thinking happens when people with many different perspectives share their ideas and, today more than ever, it is vital to utilize the entire potential talent pool and help all students be ready to succeed. Professor and Director of Diversity Initiatives Michele Halleran currently leads several efforts aimed at increasing the number of female students in all College of Aviation degree programs. Professor Halleran began leading the student representatives of the Women’s Ambassador Mentoring Program in 2019, helping to engage incoming female students before they arrive at the university. The ambassadors continue to be mentors to students and in the three years since she started the College of Aviation branch of the program, female enrollment in the Aeronautical Science degree program increased by 4.2 percentage points. In 2022, Professor Halleran helped launch a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee within the University Aviation Association that is aimed at promoting diversity through educational opportunities, workshops, committee meetings, white papers and forums. Professor Halleran is also serving as the first chair of the Embry-Riddle Women in Aviation Education Committee, which was founded by Board of Trustee member Ken Dufour. Assisted by Philanthropy, the Women’s Giving Circle was also established to fund available scholarships for underrepresented students.
Women’s Giving Circle Learn more about the
9
Made with FlippingBook - Share PDF online